Stock News: Enviro-Hub signs 54.9 mln sgd property sale-and-leaseback deal

Electronics waste recycler Enviro-Hub Holdings Ltd (formerly Leong Hin Holdinsg) said it has signed a 54.9 mln sgd sale-and-leaseback deal for its two properties with Australia's MacarthurCook Property Investment Pte Ltd. Under the deal, Enviro-Hub will sell its leasehold industrial properties in Gul Way and Tuas Ave 2 for 54.90 mln sgd to MacarthurCook. Upon completion of the sale, expected in the first half of 2007, both properties will be leased back to Enviro-Hub for 10 years, with an option to renew for another five years. Enviro-Hub said it will book an exceptional gain of 37.4 mln sgd from the deal. Proceeds from the divestment will be used to repay bank borrowings and provide additional working capital for the group's expansion plans, it said.

Stock News: SembCorp Marine higher after winning 180 mln usd deal

SembCorp Marine Ltd was higher after its wholly-owned unit Jurong Shipyard won a 180 mln usd contract from Saudi Aramco Overseas Co BV, a subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian Oil Co. The contract involves the design, construction and delivery of a self-elevating heavy-lift jack-up barge. The barge is scheduled for delivery in the first quarter of 2010. SembCorp Marine was up 0.06 sgd or 1.77 pct at 3.46 with 535,000 shares traded.

Stock News: Biosensors higher on hopes of securing CE Mark soon

Biosensors International Group, a maker of drug-eluting stents (DES), was higher amid hopes that it will soon secure a CE mark that will enable it to distribute its DES products in Europe, dealers said. UBS Investment Research said it is recommending Biosensors as a "buy 2" with a target price of 1.25 sgd per share as it believes the CE Mark approval will be out soon. "Our 'buy 2' call is based on likely receipt of CE approval by Bionsensors given that the company applied for this in April 2004. We believe about two years may be a reasonable time frame to get this approval," UBS said in a note to clients. Biosensors was up 0.055 sgd or 5.88 pct at 0.99 with 18.99 mln shares traded.

Stock Outperform Call: Capitaland with target price of 6.6 by Macquarie!

Macquarie Equities Research says CapitaLand is its top pick among property development stocks here. "The Asian property outlook remains strong in 2007 and CapitaLand, in our view, is the best proxy to Asian reflation," Macquarie said in a recent note to clients. The brokerage said CapitaLand is benefiting from the demand for property here and in China. "We believe Singapore office rents will test 1996 peaks and expect strong sales in the high-end residential segment against the backdrop of the remaking of Singapore into a global city," it said. CapitaLand's exposure to the Chinese property sector is equally split between the residential, retailing, serviced apartment and office sub-sectors, and this should minimize the effect of any moves by the government there in future to dampen the housing market, Macquarie said. Macquarie has an "outperform" rating for CapitaLand and a target price of 6.60 sgd per share. This target price does not take into account the possibility that CapitaLand will win the licence to build and operate a casino resort on Sentosa Island here. The government is to announce this month the winning bidder for the Sentosa casino resort project. Macquarie said that if CapitaLand and its partner, Kerzner International, won the bidding, it would raise its target price for CapitaLand by 0.46 sgd per share. At 11.06 am, CapitaLand was up 0.05 sgd or 0.78 pct at 6.45, with 5.05 mln shares traded.

Stock News: Hongwei to double capacity for synthetic cotton in 2007

Hongwei Technologies Ltd, a China-based manufacturer and supplier of polyester fiber, said it is looking to double its production capacity for synthetic cotton to 16,000 tons next year, to tap on its increasing popularity over natural cotton in the textile industry. It is building a new factory in phases and completed in the second half of next year. The new factory will enjoy tax exemption for two years and three years of 50 pct tax relief. The group said synthetic cotton is more competitively priced and environmentally-friendly than natural cotton, and yields a higher gross profit margin of 32 pct, compared to 28 pct for traditional products. "The new factory will expand our production capacity rapidly. We are also looking to more research and development efforts to develop new products with higher profit margin to meet customers' requirements," Hongwei chief operating officer Wu Guoxin said in a statement.

Stock Buy Call: Rotary target price rise to 1.1 by Kim Eng!

Kim Eng Securities says it has started covering on Rotary Engineering Ltd with a "buy" rating and a price target of 1.10 sgd per share based on the company's growth prospects. The brokerage believes Rotary Engineering is well positioned to obtain work on the projects in the oil and gas industry here. "It is also a preferred engineer on the panel of leading refinery players like Shell and Exxon Mobil and looks set to benefit from the impending increase in downstream and oil terminal capital expenditures in Singapore and the region," Kim Eng said in a note to clients. Shell is building here a 3 bln-usd petrochemical cracker which is due to begin working by 2009 or 2010, and ExxonMobil is planning to build its second cracker here. Kim Eng expects Rotary's net profit to grow to 33.8 mln sgd this year from 9.3 mln sgd last year, to 35.5 mln sgd next year and to 40.4 mln sgd in 2008. At 11.19 am, Rotary was up 0.03 sgd or 3.92 pct at 0.795, with 6.86 mln shares traded.

Stock Upgraded: Raffles Medical Group target price upgraded to 1.15 by DBS Vickers!

DBS Vickers said it has lifted its target price for Raffles Medical Group Ltd to 1.15 sgd per share from 1.0 previously as it expects the hospital operator's earnings growth to remain robust in the next few years. "Given the improvement in efficiency and continued increase in local and foreign patients, we are positive on the group's growth and earnings for the next few years," DBS Vickers said in a note to clients. DBS expects Raffles Medical's net profit to rise from 12 mln sgd last year to 15.4 mln this year, 21.3 mln in 2007 and 27.4 mln in 2008. Future growth will be driven by Raffles Medical's expansion into key gateway cities in China by 2008, it said. At the midday break, Raffles Medical was up 0.065 sgd or 7.1 pct at 0.98 with 1.3 mln shares traded.

Stock Upgraded: Chartered target price upgraded to 10.6 usd by Citigroup!

Citigroup has lifted its target price for Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd's American Depositary Receipt (ADR) to 10.60 usd from 8.80 as it believes Chartered is well positioned for a strong recovery in the next 6-12 months. Each ADR is equivalent to 10 ordinary shares, which means Citigroup's target translates to 1.06 usd or about 1.63 sgd per share. Chartered's ADRs rose 0.14 usd or 1.59 pct to close at 8.96 on Nasdaq overnight. "Better execution and strong product roadmap, coupled with customer diversification in the leading edge process (of 65-nanometer chips) supports our positive view," Citigroup said in a research note. Capacity utilization at Chartered's newest wafer fabrication facility, Fab 7, is running at 75-78 pct, better than the 74 pct forecast by Citigroup as the company has managed to secure more orders from computer chip maker Advanced Micro Devices, it said. At the midday break, Chartered was up 0.04 sgd or 2.96 pct at 1.39 with 7.57 mln shares traded.

Stock News: Sun Business Network shareholder to sell 86 mln shrs at 0.06 sgd

Magazine publisher Sun Business Network Ltd (SBN) said its major shareholder Sun Media Investments Holding Ltd will sell 86 mln SBN shares at 0.06 sgd each to certain strategic investors as part of the company's rationalization exercise. Following the share sale, Sun Media will cease to be a direct substantial shareholder of SBN and SBN's board will be reconstituted, it said.

Stock News: Malaysia may sell Johor monorail stake to Singapore's SMRT

Singapore's SMRT Corp is seeking a stake in the 3 bln rgt Johor Baru monorail project, the New Straits Times reported, citing Rashidi Mohd Noor, chairman of Jalur Mudra Sdn Bhd, a special purpose vehicle created by the state government to build the monorail. Rashidi said SMRT is also interested in becoming a technology partner or project manager for the Johor Baru monorail. "The Johor government is open to SMRT's involvement. We are evaluating their proposal. We believe this is a win-win proposition," Rashidi was quoted in the report as saying. A line linking Johor Baru to Singapore is also under consideration, he added.

Stock News: Ntegrator Int secured 23.5 mln usd contract!

Ntegrator International Ltd, a regional communications network specialist and systems integrator, said it has secured a 23.5 mln usd contract from state-run Myanmar Radio & Television (MRTV). The contract, the largest the company has secured since it commenced operations in 2002, covers the supply, delivery, installation and commissioning of equipment for a TV studio, radio studio and earth station. Ntegrator said it will also supply MRTV with fiber optic network equipment as well as a TV and radio transmitter. "This contract signals a significant milestone for us not only for the record size of the contract but also the fact that Ntegrator is now recognized for the design and installation of large and complex integrated communications systems," Ntegrator managing director Jimmy Chang said.

Market news: Singapore Nov PMI 54.6 pts vs 53.4 in Oct

The overall purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 54.6 points last month from 53.4 points in October, driven by strong electronics orders and production, the Singapore Institute of Purchasing and Materials Management said. "The increase in the overall PMI was attributed to higher new orders and as well as higher levels of production and inventory," the institute said. The electronics sector PMI rose to 56.3 points last month from 54.4 points in October, the institute said, the sector having recorded stronger orders and levels of production.

Stock News: Norelco UMS to invest 20 mln usd on new manufacturing plant

Semiconductor and hard disk drive (HDD) equipment maker Norelco UMS Holdings Ltd said it will invest 20 mln usd on a new manufacturing plant here that will make aerospace parts and components. The facility, to be built by Boustead Projects Pte Ltd and leased to Norelco UMS, is expected to be completed in September next year. Norelco said its investment covers equipment and other infrastructure to make the plant ready for production in January 2008. "The group's new aerospace facility is expected to generate annual revenues of about 100 mln usd five years from now," Norelco UMS said in a statement.

Stock news: Chartered Fab 7 utilitization exceeded forecast

Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing Ltd said its 775,000 square foot Fab 7 facility will be able to produce up to 30,000 wafers per month when it is fully facilitized. At its current capacity, Fab 7 produces some 15,000 wafers per month. "We will fully ramp up the fab, depending on the market situation," Chartered's vice president of Fab 7 operations Zadig Lam told a press briefing. Lam said the fab is currently 75-78 pct utilized and for the fourth quarter he expects the group's overall utilisation rate to be about 70 pct.. This is the company's first 300 mm or 12-inch wafer facility, which uses 90-nanometer (nm), 65-nm, 0.13-micron and 0.11-micron process technologies, and can be scaled to 45-nm and beyond. Chartered said it plans to ramp up its 45-nm process technology in the third quarter next year. Lam said the company has spent some 3 bln usd building Fab 7, as part of its joint-development collaboration with IBM Corp, Infineon and Samsung. Fab 7 is currently serving major clients like Advanced Micro Devices Inc, IBM Corp, Infineon, Microsoft, Qualcomm and Texas instruments, he added. The group also operates four 200-mm facilities in Singapore.

Stock News: Magnecomp unit buys 75 pct stake in Dutch firm, to invest in China

Magnecomp International Ltd (MIL) said its 83.3 pct-owned unit Mansfield Manufacturing Co Ltd (MSF) will acquire a 75 pct stake in Exerion Precision Technology of the Netherlands for 2 mln eur. It said the acquisition will help Magnecomp secure high-end manufacturing and assembly technology and expand into Eastern Europe. The acquisition is expected to be completed by the end of this year. Meanwhile, MSF will also buy a piece of industrial land in Suzhou, China for 8.5 mln yuan, on which it will build a 48-mln-yuan new factory under phase 1 of the development. The facility is expected to begin production in the third quarter of 2008. MSF has also set up a subsidiary called Mansfield Manufacturing (Dalian) Co Ltd in Dalian, China for its metal stamping and tooling business. "The recent developments... are expected to lead to better contributions from this key business unit," Magnecomp CEO Steven Campbell said in a statement.

Stock News: Swiber secured deal worth 14 mln usd!

Swiber Holdings Ltd was higher after announcing it has secured a three-year charter deal worth about 14 mln usd from BG Exploration and Production India Ltd, dealers said. Swiber added 0.03 sgd or 2.97 pct to 1.04 on volume of 3.05 mln shares.

Stock News: Genting gains on casino hope!

Genting International was higher on hopes that the consortium led by the company will win the bidding to build a casino resort on Sentosa island here, dealers said. At 9.24 am, Genting International stock was up 0.025 sgd or 6.49 pct at 0.41, with 17.42 mln shares traded. The Straits Times Index was up 1.72 points or 0.061 pct to 2,837.76. Six out of seven analysts polled by XFN-Asia predict that the consortium of Genting International and Star Cruises Ltd will win the bidding to build the casino resort on Sentosa. Analysts said victory would be a strong catalyst for Genting International's share price. OCBC Investment Research analyst Winston Liew said: "Looking at how it was traded since its IPO, it has not moved that much ahead of its IPO price. On that basis, one can argue that not that much has been factored-in." He said that if the Genting International consortium won the bidding, Genting International's share price could easily double. CIMB-GK analyst Steven Tan said Genting International would trade close to 0.50 sgd if it won the bidding.

Stock Outperform Call: China Kangda with a target price of 0.72 by CIMB-GK

CIMB-GK Research said it has initiated coverage of frozen meats supplier China Kangda Food Co Ltd with an "outperform" rating and a target price of 0.72 sgd, given the strong growth prospects of the company going forward.
"With several initiatives in the pipeline, including trying to beef up Japanese sales and introducing onion rings with a strong debut in the US, we expect positive news flow and successful execution to provide share price catalysts," CIMB-GK analyst Kerryn Tay said in a note.
She said she expects to see a 22 pct year-on-year revenue growth for China Kangda in the fourth quarter, accounting for 35 pct of 2006 revenue, driven by processed food due to new product launches.
The brokerage forecasts China Kangda posting sales growth of 14 pct and 28 pct this year and next to 511.3 mln yuan and 654 mln, respectively.
"Going forward, we expect continuing strong growth to come from the processed food business. This upside will however be offset by lower average selling prices for rabbit meat, higher depreciation costs and lower gross profit margins as more research and development activity takes place," Tay said.
She added that China Kangda offers good exposure not just to China but also to its growing exports.
"We look positively on its diversified revenue base as well as its secure supply base," Tay said.
At 10.20 am, China Kangda was up 0.035 sgd or 6.93 pct at 0.540 on volume of 10.04 mln shares.

Stock Outperform Call: M1 with price target of 2.37 by Daiwa!

Daiwa Institute of Research says it has begun covering MobileOne Ltd with an "outperform" rating and a six-month target price of 2.37 sgd, saying the cellphone carrier is a defensive yield play. Daiwa said in a note that Mobile One had defensive qualities, high-quality management and dividend-yield support. But it remarked: "We believe the growth outlook is not exciting and that the company may find it difficult to broaden its pure-mobile focus in the near term." The brokerage expects MobileOne to post a rise in net profit for this year of 0.6 pct to 161.9 mln sgd, and that its net profit will grow to 165.3 mln sgd next year and to 173.5 mln sgd in 2008. At 2.15 pm, MobileOne was unchanged at 2.12 sgd.

Stock Overweight Call: Gem TV with target price of 2.3 by JP Morgan!

JP Morgan said it has initiated coverage of UK-based Gems TV Holdings Ltd with an "overweight" recommendation and a 2.30 sgd target price due to the company's attractive growth valuations. "We estimate that Gems TV should generate an earnings per share compounded annual growth rate of 27 pct for the three years up to year to June 2009 on the back of new expansions into the home TV shopping markets in the US and Germany (from the current financial year)," JP Morgan analyst James Tan said in a note. He expects the US to be the next potential earnings driver for Gems TV. JP Morgan estimates the company will post a 35.1 mln usd net profit for the year to June 2007 from 28.8 mln the preceding year, and sees net profit further rising to 56.3 mln usd and 72.5 mln usd in the next two years. At 3.15 pm, Gems TV gained 0.14 sgd or 10.61 pct to 1.46 on strong volume of 36.84 mln shares.

Stock Buy Call: Ho Bee upgraded to buy by DBS Vickers!

DBS Vickers Securities said it has upgraded its rating for Ho Bee Investment Ltd to "buy" from "hold," setting a higher target price of 1.46 sgd for the property developer from 1.36 after a string of positive newsflow on property acquisitions. Ho Bee, together with MCL Land Ltd, will jointly acquire Holland Hill Mansions for 292 mln sgd. The company also emerged as having submitted the highest bid for a condominium development site at Sentosa Cove here called Waterfront Collection. "Assuming that Ho Bee is awarded the Waterfront Collection and is able to obtain an average selling price of 1,800 per square foot (psf) and an average selling price of 1,450 sgd psf for the site at Holland Hill, we have a revised target price (for the stock) of 1.46 sgd," DBS Vickers analyst Zy Sew Ho said in a note. At 10.12 am, Ho Bee was up 0.01 sgd or 0.79 pct at 1.28 on volume of 953,000 shares.

stock News: CG Tech to build new 135 mln yuan plant!

CG Technologies Holdings Ltd said it will build a new production facility in Longyan City in Fujian province, China at a cost of 135 mln yuan. It said the project is being undertaken to expand its compact combed yarn production. Its unit, Longyan CHGU Textile Co Ltd, will buy a 33,300-square-meter piece of land on which the plant will be built and will undertake the production expansion. CG Tech said construction of the new plant, which will have annual production capacity of about 7,000 tons of compact combed yarn products, will start this month and is expected to be completed by end-2007.